Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1887-11-22
WHERE SHIPS UNLOAD.
A GREAT RESERVOIR FULL OF THE
WORLDS WEALTH.

A GREAT RESERVOIR FULL OF THE
WORLDS WEALTH.
A Peep Into the Mile of Warehouses
That Line the Water Front of Brook
lyn-How the Modern Caves of Aladdin
Are Filled.
The most prominent object that attracts |
the attention of the passenger on the Fulton, |
Wall or South ferry is the long line of ware
houses that stretches along the water front of |
Brooklyn Back of these warehouses rises |
the bluff upon which the leaders of Brooklyn |
society have built their residences, and TO |
which they have given the name Of Brooklyn
Heights In the mansions luxury reigns. In
the stOrehouses commerce masses all that it
can command to fill the lap of luxury. The
piers extend out to the channel, several hun
dred feet in front of the storehouses. These
are all of brick, and vary from 800 to 500
feet in depth They stretch in practically
continuous line, broken only by the ferry
slips, for five miles, beginning with the En-
pire stores, above the great bridge, and ex-
tending beyond the Erie basin.
The buildings are not absolutely ffreproof,
but their walls are 50 thick that fire cannot
spread from one to the other The ceilings
are low and the ground floors are dark. Iron
shutters are the rule There are 1900 feet of
them altogether. There is an appearance of
great solidity about the buildings. They were
evidently bnilt to Withstand the assaults of
time, and to hold secure what is given them
to keep. Not particle of ornamentation is
to be discerned from one end of the long line
to the other The object for which these
buildings were erected is not display, but Sc
| curity. Here are the riches of the metropo-
lis awaiting its order
WHEN THE SHIPS CONE HOME
| When the ships of the merchants come in
| from foreign shores they unload their freight
! upon the piers, and it is rolled back into the
| deep recesses of the eavernous depths of these
| immense warehouses If the merchant wants
money he takes his warehouse receipts to his
| bank and puts them up as collateral If he
wishes to deliver or ship the goods, his re-
| ceipt commands their production on demand,
| and they come forth, as the water spouts
| from the pipe when the faucet is turned, or
| the light answers TO the touch of an electric
button
Great archways let in the stout Percherons
! with huge drays, which cart away hogsheads
and crates, bags and bundles, bales and boxes
in an almost endless procession. As these
carry away goods, gangs of longshoremen
roll on the piers other goods that have been
hauled up out of the holds of sailing vessels
and steamships. From the tops of the slender
masts float the flags of nearly all nations
laact Of oil IN, y,,p,hor. ha,,,, ha C+arc I
Stripes The red flag, with cross of st
George, is most numerous. The tri-color i:
prominent, as is also tine red, white and blacl
of Germany. Others are the black, yellow
and red of Belgium; the red, with white cross
of Denmark; the yellow, with red stripes, o.
Spain; the blue stripes, with yellow eros
and cross in corner, of Sweden; the white
blue and red stripes of Russia; the yellow
| red and blue stripes, with seven white star
on the blue, of Venezuela; the red, with vel
low cross, of Switzerland; and, most rare o
all, the white and blue stripes, with whit
and blue cross, of Greece. The private flag
: of the owners display strange devices, som
having tigers, lions, crosses letters and tn
like.
= The piers present busy scene. An arm,
y Of custom house inspectors and weighers i
their white caps calmly survey the scene Q
which they are indisputably the monarch.
4 A glance at the labels on their caps enable
:, one to easily distinguish them from the ls
+ borers. The latter are stalwart, with Drawn
n arms, broad chests, bronzed faces, and sturd
r. limbs As they trundle the boxes, bales au
+ bags down the piers they Dump them in littl
spaces chalked out for INHERENT owner,
= Pools of molaSses and carpet of sugar graiI
\ waste enough sweetness on the air to tone u
II | the hapJacks and coffee of the whole Sixt
R ward
FROM STRANGE CLIMES.
\ The weighers assistants knock off IL
Y boxes from great chunks of what looks Ill
Il sawed off elephants legs 1t is crude rubb.
Y that has just arrived from South Americ
and has just scraped acquaintance with re
b resentatives of the same kin from Australi
d Central America and Africa. The fine
comes from Para, in 40-pound boxes. VII,
cut into it looks like canned meat.
As bags of coffee by the hundred are roll,
\ down the piers from the ships, other bags
. pungent aroma slide down with a loud swi
from the upper stories of the warehouse
through long, steeply inclined chute of ca
vas This is so strong and coarse, and the 4
y scent is so sharp, that a laborer who essays
n, easy passage finds himself in need of nj
ch seat to his trousers at the bottom
he The deep keel ships from Calcutta and N
n Mia bring huge quantities of jute butts, bal
"a boo, hemp and cutchlike tar, used in bre
il, cries The Mediterranean line brings frn
rk and skins, the Jamaica ships bananas, I
Rio de Janeiro vessels coffee and rubber,
Goa and hides Odors float about of tan
rinds, cinnamon from the East Indies, clov
allspice, vanilla beans, bananas, orang
lemons, Goldfish, guano, figs, raisins, ma
10 tea, sugar and chocolate. Here is cochin
es in ceroons made of skins, also indigo. Ho
heads of molasses spread over acres, q
sugar in mats, boxes and hogsheads fills wa
Al, house after warehouse.
Men besneared with tar stir up with hI
paddles great caldrons of boiling pitch.
81 team of horses joys lightly along with a Il
piled to great height 1t is cork with
bark on and looks like saw logs, Anotl
truck follows with bales of Goldfish, and
na tsa other with hides heavily coated with lii
md Over great pile of rock salt the bowsprii
a ship, rising and falling with the billo
,z, tide, swings its Tapping sail to and fro
ier the trunk of an elephant. In the wareho
leI ! opposite black eat lllealllefS over a q
~, , y; pile of sulphur, while group of longsht
men play penny ante on the planks.
och There is one picture that is very pre-
The importers Of oranges and lemons h
. arranged their fruit for inspection by buy
The boxes are piled in tiers that rise from
floor of the wharf to the top of the W,
house The covers of the boxes are
IN been remove ell and the boxes laid upon d
10, sides, The fruit is wrapped in pink, pu-
white, red and striped paper. Circles
been cut ont from the wrappers, SO that
\ q ments of the oranges and lemons contrit
10 their bright colors to the great rainbow
is a sight worth crossing the river to see.
rs' A great ship, with bowsprit extending
over the wharf, has sea serpent for a fig
head Another has dragon, one a fem
another sailor boy. Here is general, Il
a goddess, here a mermaid, there seahC
There is an endless variety Of strange deS
from strange chimes New York Sun
. Fardonable Bfonder.
VT Gagiey-I hear your soG has gone
Journalism, madam.
Mrs Malaprop-Y Yes; he's contortic
for the comic papers.